Shattered Adamantium
by sakuya-of-the-sand
Summary: She didn't believe in love after Sasuke. He didn't believe in love at all. They had that in common, at least. Love came in a place most unexpected for both of them. Could they endure the pain? Or were they fated to be alone forever. SaiSakura mainpair.
1. To End the Beginning

(JUNE 16,2010) THIS IS NOT VERY EDITED AFTER THE FIRST GO THROUGH. THOUGH, I DID ADD SOME THINGS INTO IT THAT WILL BE IMPORTANT LATER ON.

This little plot bunny visited me late at night, just as I was drifting off to bed. I get a lot of ideas for fanfictions, but I never act upon them. This time though, I felt like I should type this idea out. Yea, so I'm not too good at explanations, but I think that this will turn out pretty well.

I am also going to start uploading a Harry Potter fanfiction that I had started to write a long time ago, but never finished. I feel that it was one of my better pieces of writing, and that I should complete it.

Well then, please read and review. Sakura in this fanfiction will have some abilities that are not canon at all, but then again, it is fiction (from a fan).

Disclaimer: If I were to own Naruto, well then, Kishimoto would be out of a job, wouldn't he?

* * *

**Chapter 1: To End the Beginning

* * *

**

Darkness. The air pressed in on her, slowing suffocating her from the inside out. She could hear the shallow breaths of another, the man laying next to her. It sounded as if he was beginning to lose air. Panicking, she struggled at her restraints and attempted to get free.

"Keep in down in there you little bitch!"

Her head turned sharply towards the sound of the angered voice. It seems that she had been taken prisoner shortly after the battle. Berating herself, she tried vainly to remember what had taken place earlier.

A flurry of fists and feet. The crunching noise of trees being overturned. Her fist glowed with her chakra as she smashed though branch after branch, human after human. The only goal in her mind was to get to the fortress 500 yards in front of her. The only goal in mind was _him_. She knew she had been irrational when she set out on this journey alone, without telling her shishou or her teammates, but this was _her_ journey. This was the only way that she was going to get him back. A few seconds after that thought, she blacked out.

She had been careless. Losing herself in her thoughts for a few fleeting seconds gave her enemy a chance to sneak up from behind and knock her unconscious. Cursing under her breath, she once again tried to loose her restraints. She groaned as her hands went limp. They had apparently learned from their previous attempts. No longer did her captors use normal metal cuffs. They were imbued with a chakra suppressing agent so that the shinobi couldn't escape with any form of ninjutsu. She also had no strength left, so there was no way that she could break free from just sheer force.

She bit her tounge as she thought of every imaginable route she could take. She let out a sharp intake of breath as she realized there was no other way. She had known what she would have to do ever since she woke up in this situation, but was still hoping that there would be another solution. Now that there was no hope of any other method, she prepared herself for pain. She would have to break the main bones in both her hands and slip them out, despite the agonizing pain that would shoot through her arms, and heal them with chakra as quickly as she could. Without the cuffs, she would be able to use her chakra again. Her heart raced as she prepared both her mind and body for what would come next.

Crunch. Left hand. Crunch. Right hand.

Tears were now running down her face, and a scream of pain threatened to escape from her mouth, but she clamped down on her lips. Blood leaked down her chin as her teeth bit through the soft flesh. If she was discovered now, there would be no hope of survival. She shifted around and managed to slip her hands out, albeit a hefty amount of pain. It was time to begin the healing. She had trained for so many years that it would not take too long for the bones to heal, but the green light that medics emit when healing could not be concealed in the desolate darkness. She knew she would have to fight her way out.

The healing began. A bleak green glow shone from her hands as she heard her bones pop back into place, but she also heard the guards shuffling in the dark.

"Hey! What are you doing in there."

A light clicked on, and her eyes closed painfully. They were not accustomed to the brightness, no matter how dim. She forced her eyes back open and looked around her. She could now see the guards, but that also meant that the guards could see her. They looked frantic as they attempted to unlock the jail cell, fumbling with many keys. She gazed to the left, and her heart almost stopped. It was _him_. He had been here the entire time and she didn't even have an inkling that it was _him_. His presence changed her goals almost immediately. Now she would have to get both of them out while fighting her way through the hefty thugs. It didn't matter. Her life didn't matter. She had come for him, and no way in hell would she leave without him.

The cell door creaked open and banged on the side of the wall.

"Hey….the fuck? How'd you get free? Wha…"

She didn't wait for him to finish his bewildered exclamations. Her foot crashed into his jaw as he was sent flying backwards out of the cell. Grabbing the other person, she flung him quickly on her back and ran for the cell door. She was blocked by the other guard. He was snarling and holding an axe menacingly. It seemed that he was quite inexperienced, however, with the weapon that he was swinging around aimlessly. She sent a small amount of chakra into her left fist, avoided the axe, and heaved it into the stomach of the thug. Kicking the body aside, she ran up the stairs with as much power as she had left. Her body was exhausted, but the burst of adrenaline she felt kept her going. She just had to get out of here. Whether she was alive did not matter, as long as the man on her back escaped with his life.

After running up an incline for five minutes straight, she reached the door. Unceremoniously flinging it open, she was met with a jet stream of water crashing into the side of her face. The figure on her back was knocked off, and she tumbled onto the ground, rolling to a stop quite painfully against a tree. Hissing, she looked up and found herself staring at a group of 20 shinobi. They looked to be jounin or chuunin ranked, and there was no way she could take them on in her state. Looking at the body of the person she had been traveling so hard to save, however, revived her fighting spirit once more.

But her body and mind were not linked, no matter how much she willed them to be. With a gash in her side, a bruise forming slowly on her cheek and legs, lacerations and cuts everywhere, and 5 broken ribs, she was in no condition to take on even 1 person. It didn't help that her chakra was 75 percent depleted and that she could barely stand. Her mind cried out in agony as she assessed her situation.

She was going to die. She had found him but she was now going to die. She had been so close to accomplishing her goal, and it was about to die with her in this field. No, no, she couldn't think that way. She was halfway there. She didn't leave Konoha with the intention of never returning. She knew that her friends and family were still waiting for her. Images of a blond, busty woman, a silver-haired lazy bum, an energetic, chirpy idiot, and a pale, emotionless boy with a sad, painful past flooded through her mind. They were all waiting for her, and she wouldn't let them down.

She stood up slowly and gritted her teeth. Today was not the day that she would die. Today was the beginning of the end. The beginning of a new life with a special person that she had come so far to save, and the end of a life of suffering and grief that this person had caused. She would be the one to begin the end, to end the beginning.

Energy coursed through her body, though she knew not where it came from. A light pink cloud of chakra covered her body, and she looked up menacingly at the shinobi in front of her. She would defeat them for her own happiness and the happiness of others. The figures watching her gasped and flinched when she turned her sharp gaze towards them. Her eyes had turned from a vivid green to a pale, acidic pink. Her eyes were alive with determination and fury. Many of them squirmed in their spots but didn't dare to run away. They would be killed anyways if they defied the orders of their master. She walked slowly towards them, but her every step seemed to bring more and more terror upon the 20 standing in front of her.

"I will not allow you to hurt my friends. Today, you shall DIE!"

The bubble of energy surrounding her shot off in all directions as the shinobi shielded their eyes from the light. When they opened their eyes, they had been sucked into their own nightmare. The roots of the trees surrounding them had been uprooted and were now whipping in the air, crashing down spontaneously and creating huge dents on the ground. The petals of the cherry blossoms and the leaves from the trees were cascading down furiously, moving so quickly that they gave the shinobi small cuts on their arms, faces, and legs.

In the middle of it all, stood the girl. Her long pink hair spilling around her face and shoulders, lashing in the wind. Her face twisted into a grimace of pain and anger. She pushed her arms and hands outward, causing all the roots to suddenly crash down, obliterating half of the shinobi. They had given up on fighting the menacing young girl. Spinting around and attempting to escape, the rest of the shinobi were running amok trying to find an opening from which to escape from the maelstrom. They would never know what hit them.

"I shed your blood for the sake of saving the blood of others. Your death will provide life for those you will never have a chance to kill. Be happy in this respect."

With those parting words, she flung her arms down, commanding the roots to kill the last of the survivors. As the screams of agony disappeared, so did the wind. The roots settled back down to the ground, though heaped haphazardly, and the leaves and cherry blossoms floated gently downwards. She fell, crumpled in a haze of confusion. What had she just done?

She willed herself to crawl towards the figure of the man she tried to hard to keep safe. Her fingers grazed the side of his neck as she desperately felt for his pulse. It was still there! He was alive he was…

But wait, the pulse was slowly dying down, muted as though someone had put a piece of cotton between her ears.

"NO! You…you must live! You can't do this to me, to us!...Sasuke…"

Just before her eyelids closed, the figure of a five petaled sakura blossom faded from her eyes.

* * *

"_Hey forehead girl!"_

"_Shut up pig…What the heck are you holding in your hands anyways?"_

_Ino smirked as she waved the bag in front of Sakura's face. It was small, and couldn't hold much more than 5 kunai._

"_Wouldn't you like to know?"_

_Sakura gave her a crooked smile._

"_Don't tell me…you finally convinced her?"_

"_Yup! I convinced her to teach me how to put on makeup. And mom was so proud of me that she let me have some of it. I brought it over to show you how to put it on."_

_Sakura smiled and enveloped Ino into a gigantic hug. Sakura grabbed her hand and dashed upstairs into her room. For the next hour or so, all that could be heard from the room were giggles and gasps. More than once the sound of running water would be heard, no doubt from the girls cleaning off the makeup so they could try on different colors and styles._

"_Mommy! Mommy!"_

_Haruno Chikaze turned around to see Ino and Sakura with a ridiculous amount of makeup caked onto their faces._

"_My! So this is what you two have been up to for the past hour. And you look beautiful. I'll just go grab the camera so I can take a quick picture of you too."_

_Ino and Sakura jumped on the couch as they waited for Mrs. Haruno to come back with the camera. Sakura looked over at Ino, liking the fact that the moment Ino had gotten makeup, she ran over to Sakura's to show her. Though she called her Forehead girl, Ino really did care about Sakura._

_I'll take care of her….always. I don't want anything to happen to my best friend. Ino turned to look at Sakura and blinked in surprise. After a few more seconds, she gazed into Sakura's eyes._

"_What...are you doing?"_

"_Huh that was odd. For a second there I thought your eyes were pink. But it must have been a reflection from your dress or something. Because, if your eyes were pink that would be just absurd! They I really wouldn't be able to associate with you, the all pink freak."_

_Ino was smiling and laughing while she said this, and Sakura scowled as she started tickling her._

"_Settle down girls. I finally found the camera. Sit on the couch and I'll take the picture. This will make for a good memory later on."_

_The two girls linked arms and smiled toothily into the camera. They saw a flash and Mrs. Haruno pronounced she got the picture. Sakura always kept that picture in her room next to her bed. The funny thing was, her eyes were slightly pink in that picture. They all thought it was because flash and the red eye effect, but little did they know that Sakura held much more power inside her than she could've ever imagined at the time.

* * *

_

"..kura. Sakura!"

Sakura's eyelids opened and gazed upon the frightened maskless-face of Hatake Kakashi. She smiled, though she knew that she had gone too far to make it. She couldn't feel any part of her body, and she knew that her death would soon come.

"You're not wearing your mask. This is a… pleasant… parting gift."

Kakashi's eyes widened as his lips formed an O of surprise.

"Wha…what is _that_ supposed to mean, Sakura. You…you don't really think you're going to _die_ are you?"

Her expression told her everything he needed to know, but he refused to believe it. He would not, could not, lose another teammate. Turning to his left, he heard the sound of a weeping boy. The boy, clad in orange and black, was crouching next to a figure donned in white, black, and purple. Sakura knew why he was crying.

"I'm sorry, Naruto. In the end, I couldn't save him after all. Sasuke died while I was trying to escape, but I wouldn't believe that he had taken his last breath. I pulled him out and was determined to save him, but look at the irony." She gave a small laugh and coughed. "I can't even save myself."

Naruto looked at her with his tear-streaked face.

"NO. SAKURA-CHAN! You can't leave too. I can lose both you and teme in one day…"

Kakashi glared at him.

"We definitely won't allow you to die Sakura, especially if your shishou has anything to do about it."

"It's hopeless Kakashi, just look at me. I'm beyond repair, and I don't want Tsunade-shishou to hurt herself while healing me. I've already accepted what's to come. I'm so happy that I got to see all of you in my last moments. Goodbye, but not forever. I'm sure we'll meet again."

Her hand lingered on Kakashi's face as she took her last breathe. Her eyes closed, and she looked at peace. Kakashi and Naruto looked too shocked for words. A dark figure appeared at Sakura's side. Checking her pulse, he nodded.

"She still has a heartbeat, no matter how faint, and I believe that we will be able to save her if we begin travel immediately. I refuse to let her die today."

Sai lifted Sakura into his arms and sped off without listening to Kakashi's and Naruto's reply. They gaped at his retreating figure but quickly followed. Naruto looked contemplative as they set off at a neck-breaking speed back to Konoha.

"If I didn't know better, I could've sworn that for a second a tear fell out of Sai's eyes…"

* * *

So how was that for a first chapter? I typed this out so quickly that I know there are many mistakes (which will be edited later on). I do, however, want to see how many people will want to read this, so your reviews will be greatly appreciated, especially if they are accompanied by suggestions for improvement. No flames please!

:] ~sakuya


	2. Take My Hand, Tell Me Lies

(JUNE 16,2010) THIS IS NOT VERY EDITED AFTER THE FIRST GO THROUGH.

Thanks for reviewing: ArjunaAnja and Gaaraslover30240

:] Cake and cookies for all of you! Hehe.

It was actually you, Gaaraslover30240, who motivated me to finally complete this chapter. However, there may be quite a few grammar or spelling mistakes littered through this chapter (because I wanted to get it out as soon as possible) but I'll edit them later on. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: If only, if only, I had thought of the idea of Naruto first. But -sigh- I didn't, so I must be content with just reading it.

* * *

**Chapter 2: Take My Hand, Tell Me Lies

* * *

**

Three figures were scattered throughout the room, each lost in his own thoughts. The beeping of the heart monitor was the only noise that filled the absolute silence.

Sai sat next to the bed, sketchbook in hand, but his brush was holding his brush limply. Every now and then he would look up at the figure laying in the bed, begin to draw, but then shake his head and rip out the page. He simply couldn't focus. His head was spinning with questions. Would she have woken up by now if he had run just a bit faster? Would her scars fade, or would they mar her perfect pale skin? When _would_ she wake up?

On the other side of the room, blue eyes pierced the dim atmosphere as they gazed unwaveringly at the bed. Naruto hadn't slept for over 30 hours, refusing to leave the hospital room until he knew she had woken up and would be alright. His thoughts wavered between his injured teammate, and the other long lost teammate that was now being examined in the autopsy room. He would never know if Sasuke meant to return to Konoha eventually or forever betray the village, and now he would never know. Sighing, he shifted in his chair, attempting to find a somewhat comfortable position upon the hard wooden object.

A silver-haired middle aged man crouched on the windowsill, his ever present orange book perched in his hand. Kakashi was never seen without his Icha Icha books, and he would read them at any moment, no matter how random. Today, however, his hand was lax and the pages were never turned. His eyes had skimmed over the same line for the past few hours, and he couldn't stop worrying about his student, laying in that hospital bed as still as death. Though she was breathing, her breaths were shallow and weak. His other student, dead since he had arrived at the battle scene, gave him another regret to ponder on every time he visited the memorial stone. His was another name to add to the list ingrained in his heart and mind.

These three men had dutifully been in the room every since Tsunade had finished healing Sakura. Though Tsunade had told them that she wouldn't wake up for at least two days, they refused to leave the room, and by now probably smelled quite awful, as none of them had taken a shower after returning from their mission. The minutes ticked by slowly as the three ninjas awaited the return of consciousness in their fourth teammate.

Sakura couldn't die, she was the one who linked them all together. The boy who had been shunned ever since he was a little boy. The man who had suffered too many losses to count, and until receiving his first genin team had never cracked a real smile. And lastly, the dark and mysterious boy who had been unceremoniously stuck into their team ever so recently. Without her, they would all be lost once more.

Naruto finally stood up and walked over to the bed. He pulled up a chair, sat down, and took Sakura's hand into his own. Though he didn't realize, tears slowly began to slide down his face. Even though she had thought him stupid and extremely annoying when he was young, she had treasured his friendship and made him feel loved. He loved her like a sister, and couldn't bear to lose her, especially now. With Sasuke gone, she was all he had left. She was the only one he could speak to about his problems, and he knew that she would listen every time: no matter how small the situation might be or how stupid his story turned out to be.

"Sakura-chan, come back to us. You can't leave us here. We need you, _all_ of us need you, especially me. I don't think I've ever told you before, but I love you Sakura-chan. You were the first one to treat me like a human, and I'll remember it forever. Wake up, Sakura-chan…"

Kakashi and Sai watched Naruto as he lightly kissed Sakura on the forehead. The door creaked open, and a busty blond woman walked in. Tsunade gazed around and gave each the three men a disappointed and menacing scowl.

"I thought I had told you all to leave and get some rest. She won't be waking up for at least another day. Besides, do you want to be smelly and unkempt when she _does_ wake up? How do you think that'll make her feel? She'd probably be sad and angry that you guys didn't take care of yourselves. I'm telling you once again, no, this time it's an order. I want you guys to get off your asses, go home, and get some rest. I'll notify you immediately when she wakes."

Naruto gave her a defiant look and opened his mouth to retaliate, but Tsunade glared at him and he shut up. He knew what that look meant. 'Do as I say or you'll be in pain.' Sighing, he stood up and slowly walked out the door. Kakashi nodded at the vexed hokage and flashed away in a burst of leaves. Sai glanced down at Sakura one last time and jumped out the window.

Tsunade, apparently happy that the three had finally followed her orders, took Sai's place next to Sakura.

"My obedient and rambunctious pupil, won't you listen to me once more and wake up soon? I don't think you realize how much you're worrying the three of them, how much you're worrying me. I know you wanted to rescue him, but didn't you realize that you were in over your head? You're not yet strong enough to take on so many shinobi at once, especially at their level. I don't think I can ever get rid off all those scars…"

Tsunade jumped up as she realized Sakura was beginning to move. Though it was only a shifting of her arms, she was quite glad that she had made some progress. The next thing that happened surprised her, more than she would admit to Sakura in a later conversation. Sakura opened her eyes. It had only been a little more than a day, but it seemed that she had already regained consciousness. Her body must be a lot stronger than Tsunade had expected.

"Shi-shishou? Where am I?"

"Don't talk too much, Sakura. A kunai punctured one of your lungs, and I had to patch it up as best I could. You might not be able to move for another day because I numbed you while I was healing you, so you wouldn't be in pain the moment you woke up. But, oh kami, I'm glad that you've woken up."

Sakura was beyond surprise when Tsunade began to cry. Besides tears of laughter after drinking far to much, her shishou had never cried in her presence. She felt warmth pool into her body as she realized how much her teacher truly cared for her.

"Where is everyone else? Were they injured in any way?"

Tsunade wiped her eyes and stood up, once again regaining her demeanor of the fifth hokage.

"Those idiots. They seem to think that staying here and watching you without sleeping was going to make you gain consciousness quicker. I sent them away so they'd stop stinking up the room. Shizune will soon go get all of them. I'm sure they'll all be extremely happy that you've awoken."

Sakura laughed. Her men always made her smile, and she knew they cared greatly for her. They were the three people she could trust with her life, and was happy to know that they were smart enough to listen to Tsunade's demand. Her mind flitted over the incidents of the other day, and her faced sobered.

"Shishou…I know you probably won't want to discuss this, but have you preformed an autopsy on Sasuke's body?"

Tsunade sighed and tugged her ponytails in an agitated manner. She knew that Sakura would want to talk about Sasuke eventually, but she didn't realize that she would do this the moment she awoke.

"Yes, I've examined him myself, and I can say that I don't envy what he had to go through. One of his lungs had been cut out to be replaced by something I have not yet identified, but I believe it was something manufactured by Orochimaru to keep Sasuke under his control. His neck area had developed a rash and was quite irritated, probably caused by Sasuke's itching. Strangely, I could not find any evidence of the curse seal anywhere on Sasuke's person. It was as if it had just disappeared. It didn't even leave any mark on his systems either, though you would think it should. I'm still undergoing my investigation, but I wished to see you before I proceeded."

Sakura untangled the lump in her throat, and choked down the tears that were threatening to fall. Sasuke had led such a hard life in Konoha and had met an even harsher lifestyle after being kidnapped by Orochimaru. Before she could think of anything intelligent to say, the door swung open slowly.

"I knocked, but neither of you heard me. I see you've woken up, Ugly."

Sakura's tears fled as she gazed upon the familiar figure of her friend Sai. His hair was dripping with water, probably from a rushed shower after hearing she had finally woken up, and he had that ever fake smile plastered onto his face.

"Drop it, Sai. You know I hate it when you make that expression. It's better to see you neutral than stare at that creepy smile of yours for hours on end."

Sai nodded and returned his face to his natural position. It indeed was more comfortable to have this stoic and emotionless expression on his face rather than attempt to smile awkwardly every single minute. Sai was glad that Sakura and Tsunade understood and didn't mind this. He looked up when he felt fingers gently touching the side of his face.

"You're hurt."

His heart fluttered when he saw the saddened expression of Sakura. What was this emotion? Why was he suddenly feeling this way? And around none other than "Ugly?" Well, he supposed that he wouldn't call her Ugly, the way she looked now. Sakura had grown her hair out once more, and now her long, pink locks hung to just above her hips. Her forehead (yea, still somewhat big) wasn't the first thing that caught peoples' eyes anymore, it was her captivating jade green eyes. They were always filled with some sort of emotion. Most ninjas' eyes became dull and lifeless after long years of service, seeing their loved ones die right in front of their eyes, but Sakura seemed to have a more optimistic outlook on life. Right now though, Sai could tell that she was extremely worried about him.

"I'm fine, it's just a few minor scratches, only skin deep."

Tsunade scowled at him, but upon observing the pain etched into Sakura's features from seeing one of her teammates hurt, she kept her mouth closed. Of course, she wouldn't call a gash to the stomach that almost punctured his organs a scratch, or that gaping hole in his arm from a deeply embedded kunai into his bicep anything minor. She couldn't, however, bear to see any more pain reflected in her pupil's eyes.

"I'll leave you two to talk then. I have to get back to some of my other patients."

Sai and Sakura nodded goodbye to the Fifth Hokage as she stepped out of the door, gently closing it behind her. They sat there in comfortable silence for a few minutes, before Sakura started speaking.

"So what happened after I…left? I'm assuming you guys came after me?"

"Yes. Kakashi-sensei, Naruto and I discovered you had left approximately four hours after your departure from the gates of Konoha. We promptly informed the Hokage that we were going after you and raced at top speed, with Pakkun leading us. When we were closing in, around 10 enemy shinobi attacked us and we had to fight them off. I'm guessing that they were all around chuunin or jounin level, and therefore they weren't _too_ difficult to take care of. However, a few of them were quite clever and were able to draw some blood out of us. We were able to annihilate them quite quickly and continue. When we arrived we…"

Sai stopped abruptly, no knowing whether he should continue or not. What they had stumbled upon was not a very pretty sight. Sakura however, squeezed his shoulder, urging him to keep speaking.

"When we arrived to your location, we thought we had stumbled upon an earthquake. The trees were uprooted, some of them were even falling over. And…there was blood everywhere. The bodies of the shinobi were cut open, some of them missing limbs. And in the middle of it all, we found you. At first we thought you were dead, but Kakashi-sensei felt a heartbeat and attempted to wake you. When you did wake, however, you spoke as if you were going to die. When you fainted again Kakashi and Naruto assumed you were dead, but I would not believe it. I felt a very small heartbeat and raced back towards Konoha. What happened next, I'm sure you can guess yourself."

Sakura grimaced. Her teammates had gone through so much just to get her back. How could she have been so selfish? She would have never forgiven herself if her teammates had been killed, partly because she knew it would have been her fault.

"Are Naruto and Kaka-sensei fine? Have they been hurt too?"

"They have been taken care of by Hokage-sama, and are now waiting for us at Ichiraku. Hokage-sama said that you could leave if you are feeling better."

Sakura, eager to see her other two teammates, immediately agreed. Sai waited outside for her while she changed into her normal clothes. Sakura's clothing had changed quite a bit over the years, but she finally found something that fit her battle style and was quite comfortable to wear. An unzipped dark red vest over a tight-fitting black tank top graced her upper body. On her left hand she still wore her signature black fingerless glove, cut off at the wrist, but on her right arm she wore her black fingerless glove all the way up to her bicep. She wore a dark red slitted skirt over black shorts, with dark red fishnet stocking trailing down her left leg. She wore regulation black ninja sandals and her right leg bore her pouch filled with shinobi weapons.

When she finished dressing, she walked out and followed Sai to Ichiraku. Their walk was silent but not uncomfortable. After 3 years of working on the same team, she had come to know that Sai was perfectly fine with not speaking for hours on end. This, in no way, meant that he did not enjoy the company of others. He simply preferred to sit in comfortable silence.

"SAKURA-CHAAAAAAAAAN!"

Sakura let out an "oof" as she was attacked by a yellow and orange ball of Naruto.

"Hey dickless, maybe you shouldn't be so brutal with your hugs right now. Ugly's injuries aren't completed healed yet."

"Shut up you queer! Sakura-chan, I'm so happy that you're ok."

Laughing at the exchanged between her two best friends, Sakura allowed Naruto to pull her off the ground and lead her towards the ramen stand. She knew that their name-calling was harmless, a friendly exchange of sorts, if you might say, between two good friends. She knew that they would be able to trust each other with anything, now that Sai had cut off all ties with Danzou.

"Ohayo, Sakura-chan."

"Ohayo, Kaka-sensei."

Sakura let out a big smile as she walked over to Kakashi and gave him a hug. He was like a father to her, and she could tell him anything, knowing that he would have some sort of advice to give her.

"Ma, ma, Sakura-chan. How many times have I told you to stop calling me sensei?"

"Gomen, Kaka-sensei. I guess I'm just too used to it."

"GROUP HUG! Come here, queer-baka!"

Sai scowled but allowed Naruto to drag him into the Team Kakashi group hug. It did feel good to have their whole team together again. He was the first to find Sakura gone, and almost left by himself to go find her. For some reason, he had felt his heart drop into his stomach, almost as if he was afraid to lose her, that he would fall apart if he had found her dead. Shaking his head, he disentangled himself from the hug and walked up to a table to order himself a bowl of ramen. Naruto followed, and ordered three bowls. Kakashi preferred to sit there and giggle perversely over his Icha Icha book, and Sakura was perfectly content with watching her three men while sipping on some miso ramen. It was indeed good to be back.

* * *

The wind fluttered and blew strands of her hair out of her loose bun as she sat on the Hokage Monument. It was common to find Sakura sitting out there on warm nights, watching the stars and sometimes even falling asleep. A black shadow flew over the rooftops and landed beside her.

"Hey, Sai. Come to join me in watching the stars?"

He nodded and sat down beside her. For some reason, he knew that she would be up here, craving the company of another. He was right, and was glad that he was the only one to be here. For some reason, he was always more comfortable when he was alone with Sakura. Perhaps it was that she understood him the best out of the members of Team Kakashi. She could read him like a book, which was saying something, because he tended to not show any emotions at all. Sighing, Sakura placed her chin upon her knees and drew her knees closer to her, as if hoping she could cut herself off from the world and into a safer place.

"You guys shouldn't have come after me."

"What are you talking about?"

"You guys might have gotten hurt. You shouldn't have come after me. It was my own fault that I didn't think my strategy through, so if I died it would have been my own fault. But, if you guys died I would've never forgiven myself."

"But we didn't die. And you didn't die. So everything is fine."

"Everything is fine…I don't think anything is ever fine. Just look at the world. So full of murder, so full of hatred and death. So many young children tainted by the blood of war and battle. They shouldn't have to be subject to this kind of world. I mean, just look at us. We've just barely turned 18, and we have seen death. We have brought death upon others, and our hands are forever stained with blood. Maybe ignorance is bliss? I've always wondered what I would've been like if I had never decided to sign up for ninja academy. Perhaps my family would still talk to me? I never would've witnessed death. I would be married by now, and my husband wouldn't let me do any work. My hands would be soft instead of calloused and rough after years of training. But what then? I would be ignorant and haughty, perhaps. I wouldn't know of the suffering of others, and I probably could care less how many people die in a single day. So in a way I am glad my ignorance is lost, because I _can_ understand the suffering of others, and sometimes I can take that suffering away. That's one of the reasons I decided to become a medic, you see."

While she was speaking, Sai had slowly inched closer to Sakura, and now their bodies were touching. It was nice to feel the small amount of body heat flow from one to the other in the cool, spring night. Sakura laid down on her back, and a minute later Sai decided to join her.

"If I had never become a ninja, I wouldn't have met you guys. So I don't regret my decision, not then, not ever."

He knew that silence was the best policy to take here, and just let her speak while he listened. It seemed, however, that she was slowly falling asleep. Without warning, Sakura grabbed his hand and squeezed, gently.

"I'm glad you came here tonight Sai. I'm glad I met you those 3 years ago. You've become one of my closest friends. I hope we'll always stay friends, even after death."

Sakura drifted off to sleep soon after, and Sai turned his head to look at her. Some strands of her hair fluttered onto her face, and her pale skin glowed in the moonlight. No, she wasn't ugly at all…she was beautiful, and it had taken him three long years to realize it. He did not know what he was feeling right now, but his heart had clenched when Sakura spoke the word "friend." Perhaps he wished to be something more? But he knew that Sakura's heart had been broken by Sasuke and had not yet been mended, so for now he would stay by her side as a loyal friend.

"Yes…we'll always be friends, Sakura."

* * *

Wahhhhhhh! It's done, after a long time of writer's block, I finally finished it. YOSH. SORRY FOR THE GRAMMAR/SPELLING MISTAKES. Tell me, was this a boring chapter? T^T It was, wasn't it? Well, -sigh- at least it's out. Next chapter shall be…better? lol I hope so xD

Please R & R!

:] ~sakuya


	3. Nothing Ever Changes

(JUNE 16,2010) THIS IS NOT VERY EDITED AFTER THE FIRST GO THROUGH.

Thanks for reviewing: Gaaraslover30240, Salekdarling

Gaaraslover30240 you are awesome and I hope this six or so months of updating has not deterred you from reading this story D: T^T

I'm sorry everyone, but I've been way too busy with school this semester. Senior year 2nd semester is the most hectic part of high school, and though I wished to write, I just couldn't find the time. Then, right after school finished I left to go to China for a month. I hope you few people who read this are still out there :D

I will be typing jutsus in Japanese and then putting the English translation in parentheses next to them. The explanation will be at the bottom of the chapter.

Disclaimer: Kishimoto…..GIVE ME NARUTO NOW! …No?…fine then ;_;

* * *

**Chapter 3: Nothing Ever Changes

* * *

**

_A scream was heard._

_Then there was silence._

_Suddently, the world was ablaze. Red, yellow, and orange were all she could see before her. The fire started burning closer and closer to her, licking her delicate skin. Where was everyone?_

_Try as she might, she could not escape this deadly inferno. It was as if she were trapped in hell, free to see everything happening, but helpless to escape her fate._

"_HELP ME! SOMEONE! PLEASE!"_

_But there was no answer. There never was. How many times had she burned already? A hundred? A thousand? A million? She couldn't remember, but she knew the feel of skin slowly melting off of muscles. Muscles peeling of bones and dripping down to the ebony abyss. Bones turning to ash as, finally, the world turned black. Then it began again._

_A scream was heard._

_Then there was silence.

* * *

_

Sakura woke up in a sweat, her forehead covered with dew and her clothes sticking to her skin. She threw the bedcovers off and ran to her bathroom, making it just in time empty the contents of her stomach into the toilet. It was that dream again.

It started a few months ago, after a simple mission gone wrong. Team 7 had been sent on an mission to bring a scroll to Gaara, the Kazekage of Suna. It all started going downhill when they were ambushed. The shinobi wore no headbands and no signs that led them to a specific village, but they were all high level shinobi with a considerable amount of training. Sakura remembered it as if it were yesterday.

~Flashback~

_"Sakura, take those four out while we handle the rest." Kakashi stated calmly as the tugged his forehead protector up, revealing the sharingan. Sakura nodded and faced the four with first stepped up and smirked, as if mocking Sakura. Her eye twitched, and she clenched her hand in preparation for a punch. The shinobi settled down into a fighting stance, beckoning her forward. Sakura charged and took a sharp left turn, rebounding off one of the trees sending her fist into the side of the shinobi's head. He dissolved into dirt._

"_Shit! A clone." She hopped onto a tree branch and readied herself for a counterattack. Her senses had sharpened over the years, and she closed her eyes in order to hear the movements of the shinobi. The other three seemed content to just watch the fight between the unknown man and Sakura._

…_There!_

_Sakura turned and heard the enemy yell "jouro senbon (raining needles)" (1) She took out two kunai and skillfully deflected most of the senbon sent at her, but a few struck her. She managed to avoid any vital organs and veins, and hurriedly pulled them out of her while jumping away from a goukakyuu no jutsu (grand fireball technique) (2). Sending chakra into her leg, Sakura smashed the tree the man was standing on and sent her fist into his face, breaking his cheekbone and nose. "Hell yea!" she screamed, looking around for the other three guys. But they were gone._

_Sakura looked to her left, and she realized why they had disappeared. Naruto was surrounded by a bubbling, glowing, gelatin-like layer of red substance, and the image of three tails could be seen, even from her distance._

_"Naruto! No!" She heard Kakashi scream. But it was too late. Something had sparked Naruto's intense anger, and his mind was gone to the fox's. He started attacking everything and everyone, be it friend or foe. Sakura was rooted to the ground, but Sai pulled her out of the way and started running away with her in his arms._

_"Naruto is lost at the moment. All we can do is hope that Kakashi-sensei can get a seal on him in time. We cannot risk him growing anymore tails."_

_The forest broke and changed into sand. They had reached the desert too late. In such a barren area, they could've seen the enemy coming from far away, but they had been in a dense area of the forest._

_Sai put Sakura down and a few minutes later they finally heard the sounds of battle die down. They sprinted back into the forest and ran over to Kakashi and Naruto. Sakura tended to Kakashi first. Nothing too bad, a fractured bone in his calf and a second-degree burn on his right hand and wrist. She healed the fracture and wrapped his hand in bandages after putting a balm on it._

_Then she saw Naruto. It was too horrible to describe with words. Running a few paces away, she emptied her stomach and dry-heaved for a little while. The sight that greeted her was not comforting at all. Naruto's skin had been burned off, and he now lay in the grass unconscious. She knew she would have to bandage him, lest leave his body open to the germs in the air, but she didn't want to touch him._

_A twinge of guilt flooded through her. This was Naruto. The Naruto that laughed and ate lunch with her every day. The Naruto that had finally given up on asking her out. The Naruto that was still oblivious to Hinata's love. She owed him too much to be squeamish at this moment._

_Inhaling a big breath of air, she steeled herself and walked back to Naruto. Sai was crouching down next to him, checking Naruto's pulse._

_"His pulse is strong, and it seems that the Kyuubi's chakra is already beginning to heal him. We will need to bandage him however. Kakashi is sending word to the Hokage to inform her of what has occurred. We should move as quickly as we can."_

_Sakura and Sai bandaged up Naruto, and the four (Sai carrying Naruto) ran back to Konoha as quickly as possible._

~Flashback End~

Though Naruto healed and bore no scars from the incident, Sakura could never look at fire again without breaking out in a cold sweat. Then the nightmares began. She could never get a good night's sleep without experiencing that horrible dream.

Sighing, she walked out of her bathroom and looked out the window. Dawn was breaking, and she didn't have to be up for another two hours. She knew she wouldn't be able to fall back asleep though, so she dressed and made her way to the Memorial Stone. She knew she would find Kakashi there.

* * *

"Yo, Sakura-chan." Kakashi gave Sakura a nonchalant wave as he continued to gaze down at the stone, his eyes tracing every teammate, every friend, every loss. The two stood in silence for a good fifteen minutes before Sakura spoke up.

"How are you, Kakashi-sensei?" She asked, probing into his life. She knew he hated being asked questions like this, but she was genuinely concerned. She saw his face yesterday when they had found her. He looked devastated. And now, seeing him once again put up a mask to everyone, feigning contentment, was killing her. She knew something was wrong.

"Are you sure you should be up this early Sakura? You look like you still need some rest. Besides, I want us to get back into training as quickly as possible."

It was so like him to avoid the question, trying to steer the discussion into a different direction, preferably one not concerning him.

"I'm fine sensei. You really should answer my question."

Another silence overtook them. Not uncomfortable, yet not so comfortable. The silence was empty, each waiting for the other to say something. Sakura was just about to huff and leave when Kakashi finally looked at her. His eyes were angry, yet an undercurrent of understanding passed through them.

"Sorry, Sakura. I'm not sure I can answer that question just yet. Perhaps…in a few years…"

Sakura sighed and sat down on the grass, linking her fingers and placing her chin on her hands. Kakashi would always be Kakashi, hiding his past even from his students, whom he claimed to be the only family he had left.

"I guess I'll have to be content with that answer for now sensei. It's unhealthy though, bottling it up like this. And I would know, being a medic and all."

The corners of Kakashi's mouth tugged his mask upwards, revealing a small smile.

"Don't worry too much about me Sakura-chan. You still need to heal before you worry about others. Only Naruto and Sai will be training today. You'll be sitting out until I get the OK from Tsunade."

Sakura pouted but waved goodbye to Kakashi as he walked away. After sitting for another hour, she got up and slowly made her way to the training grounds.

* * *

"SAKURA-CHAN!"

Sakura grimaced but waved at Naruto…who was squirming frantically because he was tied to a wooden pole by ropes made from ink?

"SAKURA-CHAN SAVE ME! QUEER HERE TIED ME TO A POLE!"

Sakura looked at Sai, who was sitting comfortably on the floor eating his breakfast.

"He kept bugging me, so I had to do something," Sai said without looking up.

Sakura sighed. What a way to start out a day.

"Sai, let him down or he won't shut up."

He seemed to think for a moment, then snapped his fingers. Naruto hung in midair for a few seconds before landing on the ground with an 'oof'.

"Queer! Why did you do that to me?"

"I believe I already answered that question. Besides, dickless, if you were a man you could've escaped quite easily. This further proves the theory that you are indeed dickless."

Naruto's eye began to twitch as he continued to yell at Sai. Sakura buried her head into her hands.

_Why me?_

"Oh sorry….am I late?"

Kakashi had made his entrance by poofing into existence behind Sakura. She glared at him.

"I suppose nothing _does_ ever change." She mumbled.

"Kakashi-sensei! Kakashi-sensei!"

Sakura and Kakashi turned to see a sweat-laden Kiba running towards them.

"Kiba-kun? Is everything ok?"

"It's Hinata! She's been kidnapped!"

* * *

(1) Jouro Senbon- Raining Needles: a barrage of needles that are sent flying at the opponent

(2) Katon, Goukakyuu no Jutsu- Fire Element, Grand Fireball Technique: a technique where the user builds up chakra in their chest and blows a large ball of fire from their mouth.

* * *

Lamest…ending…ever T^T I'm sorry that I couldn't come up with anything longer, but I thought that I should at least update. Don't worry guys! I know where I'm going with this! Sorry for the really short chapter D:

Please R & R!

:] ~sakuya


End file.
